Sophie Papa, PhD, MBBS, MRCP, medical oncologist, Clinical Academic Group, Department of Research Oncology, King’s College London, discusses leukapheresis manufacturing approach in head and neck cancer.

In a study on CAR T cells in head and neck cancer, leukapheresis was done on patients. It allowed researchers to use CAR 4αβ that was co-expressed with the CAR to manufacture cell product with a 100% success rate to date, from as little to 14 mL of whole blood to normally 120 mL of whole blood.

This is an expensive manufacturing approach, though, and it takes a long time. But, in this trial, Papa says, it was done with a blood draw—less than what would be taken in a blood donation.

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Dr. Papa on Leukapheresis Manufacturing Approach in Head and Neck Cancer

Sophie Papa, PhD, MBBS, MRCP, medical oncologist, Clinical Academic Group, Department of Research Oncology, King’s College London, discusses the impact of a recent study of chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T cells in head and neck squamous cell carcinoma.

In this study, T4 immunotherapy was used, which are T cells that are retroviral transduced to co-express T1E28ζ, a CAR coupling an ErbB ligand derived from EGF and TGFα to a fused CD28+CD3ζ endodomain, and 4αβ, a chimeric cytokine receptor containing the IL-4Rα ectodomain coupled to the IL-2Rβ endodomain.

These findings have shown that there is a 63% disease control rate, meaning 5 out of 8 patients evaluable at 6 weeks had stable disease, Papa says.

This is good news, Papa adds, as these results show that this therapy is essentially nontoxic, personalized therapy for patients who have this vey lethal form of cancer.

Dr. Papa on the Impact of CAR T Cell Trial in Head and Neck Cancer

Sophie Papa, PhD, MBBS, MRCP, King’s College London in the United Kingdom, discusses chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for patients with head and neck cancer. 

CAR T-cell therapy has become a standard of care for patients with hematologic cancers, explains Papa. It is now attempting to be used for patients with head and neck cancer. Head and neck cancer is a solid tumor that poses many challenges to CAR T-cell therapy. 

In this patient population, T cells are administered intratumorally as opposed to intravenously to target the main activity in the local regional disease and reduce the risk of the T cells getting into the circulation therefore lowering the risk of toxicities, states Papa. 

Sophie Papa, PhD, MBBS, MRCP, King’s College London in the United Kingdom, discusses chimeric antigen receptor (CAR) T-cell therapy for patients with head and neck cancer.

Dr. Papa on CAR T-Cell Therapy for Head and Neck Cancer

There are big challenges around taking this technology into solid tumors, explains Papa. One of the key challenges is the difficulty of finding something to target on a solid tumor that is only found on the tumor cells and is not found in normal tissue.

CD-19, which is the target CAR T cells have been particularly successful against, is not a tumor restricted antigen, so we have to think of different approach’s that enable us to take this technology safely to this patient population, states Papa.

Sophie Papa, PhD, MBBS, MRCP

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Dr. Papa on Leukapheresis Manufacturing Approach in Head and Neck Cancer

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